Groulx reserved a book online, called Oh My, Oh No late last night — a suitable title for what they found on Friday morning. The library and recreation centre entrance were roped off and big remediation trucks were parked close by.

According to Kelli-Ann Armstrong, spokesperson for Saanich Parks and Recreation, the carpet in the library is completely soaked but the stacks of books seem to be okay. Luckily most of the shelves inside the library are two to three inches off the ground, so while some may be damaged the majority of the books should be okay.

Armstrong says what they’re worried about now is the humidity due to the soaked carpet. Teams of people are working on soaking up as much water as possible and then fans will be deployed to assist in the drying process.

Due to a broken water pipe in the mechanical room of the Saanich Centennial Library, G.R. Pearkes Recreation Centre experienced a large scale flood overnight. The entire facility will remain closed until further notice. #YYJ#Saanichpic.twitter.com/D6H0ufBnR9

“We’re hopeful the rec centre will be open tomorrow,” she said Friday afternoon. “But things can change as we move through our plan.”

A drop box is in the works for people to return their books outside the library, but Armstrong says it may be awhile before that it’s set up. In the mean time people can drop loaned books at any of the other public libraries.

“We’re very sorry, not that we had anything to do with this, but we know it’s a real impact to the community,” she says. “We’re working really hard to get everything back to operational as fast as we can.”